Corey Tropp

December 13, 2011

Fifteen years ago I would be freaking out about the Sabres recent spate of injuries. But I guess there's just something about pushing 40 that makes you realize there's more important things in life than worrying about the respective fates of charmed 20-somethings.

Or maybe it's just that I can barely bring myself to care much about sports these days after realizing that I'm now too old to play pro hockey even if I were once good enough (which I wasn't).

Whatever the case, there's a certain amount of satisfaction that comes with my newfound sobriety towards the Buffalo Sabres (however depressing its genesis may be). Whereas I was unable to approach my Sabres analysis with little more than unbridled emotion back in the day, I now find myself capable of applying the same type of rationality that I bring to virtually any other situation. (Okay, most of the time.. fuck off.)

Like every other Sabres fan, I've had a long time to assess and digest the abilities of Lindy Ruff and Darcy Regier. A looooong time. These guys are clearly two of the best in their field at what they do. They're both Grade A talents with A-Class character. I don't think that's ever really been in question. One thing that is in question, however, is whether these guys are the right men for the job in Buffalo.

After all these years together, Ruff and Regier might as well literally be joined at the hip. Regier is not going to fire Ruff. If Ruff ever goes, Regier will be going with him. Regier will never fire his best friend. Never. You just don't do that sort of thing, and as a man I can at least respect that.

I'd be willing to bet it's Ruff and Regier's relationship over the past dozen years that's been the primary cause of most of the good that's come to the Sabres organization during that span, nearly all of which probably goes unseen by the fans and in some cases even ownership. Building trust between employer and employee is crucial to performance; treating subordinates as peers often breeds respect. However, too much trust can lead to complacency. And if you're not careful, being too friendly with your players can extinguish respect for authority. You get the idea. Every benefit has a cost.

And so it is with the injury bug.

As I think we've all written a couple times, I don't like the team's reliance on all the injuries as the reason for its poor record the past few weeks. If anything, it's primarily the roster players who have made untimely decisions that have cost the Sabres wins. That said, Ruff has done a good job managing the lineup and lines during a stretch that no coach would ever want to endure. Although hardly tough decisions, he has rewarded Kassian for his outstanding play with increased ice time, and he's also made the right call in keeping Brayden McNabb in Buffalo despite Mike Weber's return to the lineup. Similarly, the fantastic play of guys like Kassian, McNabb, Tropp, and Brennan -- especially given their NHL inexperience -- is a testament to Regier's ability to draft and develop top talent. These two guys will have jobs in the NHL as long as they want them.

Ironically, however, we're nevertheless left to wonder why the Sabres play so inconsistently night in and night out. (This is not unique to the Sabres, but not every coach enjoys a 13-year tenure with one club either.) Why they refuse to finish checks unless they feel like it. Why Thomas Vanek, Cody McCormick, and Pat Kaleta have trouble finding teammates who will actually bust their asses every goddamned shift like they do. Why a system that has lost effectiveness after taking teams by surprise six years ago seemingly hasn't adapted even though the rest of the league has caught on to the secret. Why a power play has, on balance, buh-lown! for years. These are the responsibilities of the coach. Ruff has undeniably done very good things with subpar NHL talent over the years -- if we're to believe Regier's hands were tied under Golisano and Quinn, that is -- so I don't question his ability to coach; I question why he has not gotten better results considering he's had the luxury of knowing his team better than anyone save perhaps for Barry Trotz.

That said, even more interesting amid all these injuries is the Darcy Regier situation. Will GMDR finally move assets before they've overstayed their welcome now that we almost unquestionably know that the kids on the farm can play and perform? The silver lining to the injury bug is that Regier now knows (or should know) he has the luxury of dumping salary to gain cap space while simultaneously improving the team. (I know, right!!) Does anyone even remember Brad Boyes? Zack Kassian not only outperforms him right now, he costs over three million a year less. (Oh, and he kind of resembles that nasty Milan Lucic guy, who I would love to have on my team.) Corey Tropp is going to be awesome, so Regier could likely shop Kaleta right now before his propensity for injuries renders him damaged goods. Finally, even though Jochen Hecht brings intangibles and leadership, you can't tell me Szczechura isn't an even swap offensively if Hecht and his four million could be packaged to land one more big gun up front. By the way, we've still got Marcus Foligno in Rochester.

And I know Buffalo can never seem to have enough defensemen, but right now we have Ehrhoff, Myers, Leopold, Sekera, Gragnani, Regehr, Weber, and McNabb with Brennan, Finley, and Schiestel in the immediate pipeline. Seriously, there is no reason teams even score on us, much less any reason our D can't put the puck in the net every effing game. We have an imbalance of offensive defensemen already with more ready for promotion, so there's at least two that can be moved tomorrow. Myers-McNabb can be Niedermayer-Pronger in a few years, but anyone else is fair game. I think Sekera would look good in Ranger blue.

The tragic irony here is whether you actually want Darcy Regier at the controls when it comes to making decisions that will impact the team for years ahead. Ted Black should have his hands full right now, but if there's one thing that has to change for Regier to keep his job, he has to learn to cut his homegrown players loose. He won't fire Ruff, but if he refuses to acknowledge the opportunities before him and act now, we will have substantive proof that our addiction to untimely injuries is nothing compared to our deep-seated disease that is a complacent GM.

December 08, 2011

I went to college a half-hour south of Rochester so I'm pretty well-acquainted with the place. Granted, the majority of our trips into the city were drunken late-night runs to Nick Tahou's for a garbage plate, but still ... there's not much not to like about Roch.

Apparently Zack Kassian doesn't see it the same way, however, because he sure seems to be doing everything he can to avoid going back home.

The energy Kassian brings to the Sabres' lineup is a welcome addition in its own right, but if he keeps making plays like he did last night against Philly he's in Buffalo to stay. Kassian's no-look touch pass to Ville Leino for an empty net tap-in and a wrister through traffic that he later put past Ilya Bryzgalov demonstrated poise that belies the fact that he's only played half a dozen NHL games.

Admittedly, six games is hardly a statistically significant sample size, but at almost a point per game (3 goals, 2 assists in that span) and respectable ice time (average of 11-12 minutes TOI), all indications so far point to the kid being able to handle the responsibilities he's given.

In fact, as I mentioned to Erik last night during the game, Kassian basically makes Brad Boyes irrelevant, and I don't expect Boyes to make it through the entire season on this roster. Incidentally, the same can be said of Corey Tropp in comparison to Patrick Kaleta.

Interestingly, there's very little about the Sabres' recent skid that can be attributed to the play of the injury call-ups. I get the feeling that Lindy and the team are comfortable hanging their recent woes on their dearth of regulars, but it's been sloppy play and bad decision-making by roster players that's contributed most to the losses.

Put it this way: Matt Ellis is never gonna cost you a Cup. This certainly isn't the time of year to be gutting out injuries that could worsen to the point of costing players even more games, but if Darcy Regier is worth his salt, the play of guys like Kassian, Tropp, and Brayden McNabb has to be causing some of the regulars to think about just how much pain they're willing to play through.

December 07, 2011

Leino's 1st period goal was the prettiest play I've seen in ages! As soon as video hits YouTube I'll post it here!

UPDATE: 12/8/11 - So the best I can do for video is a link to NHL.com's video highlights of the game. Wait for the page to load, sit through the commercial, and then click the "play" icon for the Leino goal on the right. It's worth the wait though. Great play. Why can't this team do more of this and less of the whole sucking thing??

OK - So I wasn't planning on live blogging, but couple things...

3-1 Sabres after first? When was the last time THAT happened?

Gerbe should be shot for that turnover while clearing the zone at the end of the period. Inexcusable. Can't blame Miller for that goal.

While I'm on the subject of Miller, he's playing well. That poke check on Jagr's breakaway made Jagr look like an old man. Wait! Jagr IS an old man! Still, great play by Miller on a future Hall of Famer.

Corey Tropp needs to stay up. He adds much needed toughness to the lineup. He absolutely lit up Zac Rinaldo in a fight at the end of the 1st.

2nd Period Highlights

Mller makes save with his face after mask is knocked off by teammate.

Timmonen scores.

Hartnell scores. Cue the home ice collapse... again...

And Jaromir Fucking Jagr scores with his walker. 4-3 Flyers. How quickly things have gotten out of hand! By the way, Jagr's goal? You guessed it, high glove side on Miller. I'm pretty sure I could score on Miller high glove side at this point and I haven't been on skates in 15 years.

Final thoughts on the 2nd period. Turnovers KILLING the Sabres! I can't blame Miller for much of this. He should have had the Jagr goal. By this point, there isn't a hockey player all the way down to mites that doesn't know you go high glove side to beat Miller. But, other than goal, the coming loss is completely attributed to poor defense and AWFUL turnovers. Get ready for an ugly 3rd period...

3rd Period Highlights

5:30 left in 3rd, Sabres have had a couple of chances, most notable was Stafford. Other than that, snoozeville so far.

3:34 Stafford gets absolutely robbed!

2:45 Miller's mask flies off on a save... again. Play stops for repairs. UPDATE: Apparently the save opened the sutures from the cut sustained in the 2nd.

Final game thoughts... Turnovers were obscene tonight! Every single goal but one came off a bad turnover. I can't knock Miller, he played a solid game. As I said earlier, the only goal I really blame him for is Jagr's in the 2nd. The team in front of him has to play smarter. Gerbe's gaffe at the end of the 1st was inexcusable, and Gragnani can't make that pass in OT. Terrible decision on his part. I hate the Flyers. Thankfully (said with sarcasm), Gary Bettman has reduced them to an afterthought for Sabres fans with the proposed reorg plan. Thanks Sabres for another soul crushing home loss.

November 21, 2011

As I was lying on my couch back on April 21 watching reruns of the 2011 first round playoff matchups on NHL Network, I wasn't expecting to hear the best hockey quote of all time (well, save perhaps for the time Jim Schoenfeld called referee Don Koharski a fat pig ... hard to top that one).

Tampa Bay Lightning coach Guy Boucher was at the podium taking questions after his guys had just lost in double overtime to go down 3-1 in their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Then it happened. You faintly heard a reporter ask Boucher if he thought the Lightning could come back to win the series. Boucher shot him a glare as if he was imagining blowing the guy's head off with laser beams and said (and I paraphrase), "If you knew me you wouldn't even ask me that question." He said he'd seen it before, done it before.

And then he said the one thing that made me an instant fan: "It's not about momentum; it's about desperation."

Apparently so. The Lightning came back to eliminate the Pens in Game 7 and went on to sweep the Caps in round two.

Notwithstanding the fact that I think that's a great quote in general, I think it resonated with me more than it normally would have because if there's one thing that consistently seems to be missing from Buffalo's game, it's desperation. Or, more specifically, 60 minutes worth per game. The Sabres always seem to be able to pour it on in the last few minutes when they're down 4-1.

Now, I realize it might seem a bit silly to complain about this right now. At the time of this writing the Sabres are currently sitting atop the Northeast division and are in second place in the Eastern Conference with 24 points, just one behind Philly and three behind Minnesota and Chicago, who lead the NHL.

Still, to me it feels like the Sabres have this statistical advantage despite their play, not because of it. Before you dismiss me as a garden-variety cynic, consider this: a mere two points separate Buffalo from eighth place Ottawa. That means that by the next time the Sabres lace up for a game, which is two days from now, the standings could look considerably different.

Yes, it's only November. There's not even any such thing as the "playoff picture" until February. But considering the recent games against Boston and New Jersey looked like "Men vs. Boys I & II," respectively, with the Sabres being thoroughly outworked and overmatched in both contests, I see their current 12-8 record as a bit of an anomaly. If Vanek and Pominville were starting as slowly as the rest of the team, these guys would probably be mired in last place with the Islanders.

Through the first 20 games of the season, the Sabres' outings seem to be going a little like my golf game. It never fails. I'll hit a monster 300 yard drive down the middle of the fairway, then shank the approach and five-putt. And, of course, whenever it takes me six strokes to reach the green, I'll sink my first putt. In short, if I could pick and choose my best shots from each hole and magically combine them into one series every time, I'd be on the pro tour.

And so it seems to be going for Buffalo. They've tended to start slowly, especially at home, and if Miller or Enroth have been able to withstand the first 10-20 minutes, they can usually pull out a W. And just when they finally come out of the gate flying and taking the fight to the opponent, as they did Saturday night against the Coyotes in Buffalo, Enroth lets in a couple softies and turns in a subpar performance.

Thankfully for the Sabres and their fans, these guys actually are pro athletes. While there's no hope for my golf game, these guys still have a sporting chance to learn to put together a full 60 minutes of hockey every game (Psst: I'd even take 55). Maybe it's true that Leino just has to find some chemistry with new linemates and Ehrhoff has to find some open lanes to the net. Regardless, it all starts with determination. And not just by Matt Ellis and Corey Tropp.

With injuries starting to pile up -- Hecht, Ennis, McCormick, Miller, and Weber are all still out and you know the news isn't going to be great on Myers -- it's gut check time for the Sabres. No better time to start digging deep than the rematch against Boston on Wednesday.

November 16, 2011

Okay, I have a confession to make. My immediate reaction to watching Milan Lucic bowl over Ryan Miller was "Holy shit!" As in, I almost couldn't believe what I'd just seen. You just don't see goalies getting run like they did in the '70s and '80s.

But that's not my confession. My very next reaction was hoping that Miller would be shaken up enough that Enroth would be able to string at least five games together. I know, that's terrible. So for that I'm sorry.

Kinda.

Obviously I don't "want" Miller to be hurt. I rarely even hope other teams' players get hurt anymore. I think that comes from having kids of my own now and being able to empathize with other parents. But you sensed that something had to give, and soon. I have no idea what Miller's problem has been lately, but as he was being lit up during the Philly game (which Ruff lost because everyone knew he should've pulled Miller after the second goal), I just remember thinking he either 1) isn't getting laid anymore now that he's married, or 2) knows Enroth deserves to be starting.

That said, I was almost in shock when I heard Ruff was going with Enroth against Calgary on Nov. 4th. I mean, that was the first game of a back-to-back. As I wrote on the Buffalo News blog at some point earlier, Ruff not only should have started Enroth that Friday but on Saturday against Ottawa too if he won. Hey, Ruff's the one who always likes to ride a winner.

But I can understand why he started Miller in Ottawa. For starters, he may just not have his hand on the pulse of his team like I do. But more likely, he (correctly) realized that he could crush Miller's fragile psyche all on his own if he benched him three games in a row.

The Miller-Enroth scandal is nothing if not political. I get it. You can't just abandon the face of the franchise and his six point whatever the hell million dollar salary because some backup's putting up better numbers. Can you?

Well, thanks to Lucic we may not have to find out. Miller's injury should give all of us at least a couple weeks to determine whether Enroth is the real deal or not.

Until then, some quick thoughts on the hit itself and the fallout:

- Of course Lucic ran over Miller on purpose. That's the reason I've wanted Darcy Regier to trade for him the past two years (last year being the opportune time when Lucic had an off-year by his own admission in 2009-10)

- The Sabres' collective lack of retaliation for the hit literally left me in disbelief as I watched them become the laughing stock of the league. So, there are two potential reasons the Sabres did nothing after watching their goalie absorb the biggest cheap shot another team can throw: 1) They don’t like Ryan Miller; 2) Ruff prevented it (either implicitly or explicitly).

As for #1, I have no idea what the team thinks of Miller. If I had to guess, half probably hate him and half probably love him. That's generally the way it goes in a dressing room. But these are hockey players. By the time you're a pee wee, you're always looking for any excuse for a legitimate scrap. Especially when the game's out of reach, which it was by the end of the second period. Translation: Even if you can't stand a teammate, you're still a friggin' hockey player, goddammit!

As for #2, let me be clear here: Ruff's teams have never played with the grit required to win the ultimate prize. I don't think this is even up for debate. Most coaches don't have the luxury of getting two periods to plan their retribution. Lindy had full "slap bet" control for over two-thirds of the game, yet he allowed Barney Lucic to skate away unscathed. What. A. Pussy.

The Bruins and Sabres are simply two different teams. Boston's Cup fate was sealed the moment Nathan Horton was knocked the F out and they rallied around their fallen teammate. The Sabres did the exact opposite last Saturday night, doing their best impression of their coach and tucking and running when it was most important to suck it up and fight back.

Look, Lindy's a nice guy. I know for a fact. He was the celebrity guest at my hockey banquet when I was 15. His wife was pretty hot too, but I digress. In no uncertain terms, the Sabres don't have a rep around the league as a soft team for nothing. It begins and ends with coaching.

- As for Lucic not getting suspended for the hit, I think that was the right call. While the rules state that goalies in Miller's position are not fair game, it's a little difficult to prove Lucic intended for Miller to be concussed and miss time.

But who really cares? This works out swimmingly for the Sabres; it means Patrick Kaleta can steamroll Tim Thomas next Wednesday and only get two minutes. Yeah, yeah ... I realize he'll get 10 games from Brendan Shanahan if he does it because that's just the way shit works in the B-lo, but we've got Corey Tropp. Plus T-Pegs will pay his fine. No worries.

It's the suspense around whether the Sabres even care enough to even the score that has me intrigued.